1. Technical Field
This invention relates to data models and processing systems for complex performance management reporting. In particular, this invention relates to multi root data models and processing systems which provide a flexible mechanism for organizing and relating performance management data and reporting aggregated results across a wide variety of organizational hierarchies and levels as defined in the data model.
2. Background Information
Businesses are continually driven to maximize performance throughout the organization. Outsourcing has emerged as a widely applicable and popular procedure that businesses employ to reduce costs, increase profitability, and focus the business on its core operations. A business may outsource nearly any aspect of it operations.
Outsourcing providers have responded to the desire to outsource business functions. For example, many outsourcing providers have established independent outsourcing centers which deliver specific outsourcing offerings. Other outsourcing providers manage and provide comprehensive outsourcing services through a global delivery network. Outsourcing provides one avenue through which a business may increase performance.
With outsourcing, and the more general need to maximize performance, comes the need to provide performance management tracking and reporting. Providing excellent performance management is a difficult challenge, however. Businesses today often span the globe, deliver diverse product lines, and implement complex organizational structures. In the past, performance management reporting was limited in scope and capability, and did not have the flexibility to meet the performance management reporting challenges of modern, global businesses.